wmmm^ 


I 


HORRORS 

IN  ARCHITECTURE  AND 
SO-CALLED  WORKS  OF  ART 
IN  BRONZE  IN  THE  CITY  OF 
NEW  YORK   


BY   AN  ADMIRER 
OF  ART  WHOSE 
NAME  IS  OF 
NO  CONSEQUENCE  TO  THE  READER 


THE  WEALTHY  CITIZENS  OF  ROME  WHO  VISITED  ATHENS  IN  THE 
HEIGHT  OF  ITS  REFINEMENT  AND  ARTISTIC  SPLENDOR,  CARRIED  BACK 
WITH  THEM  TO  THE  IMPERIAL  CITY  OF  THE  C.«SARS  WONDROUS  ACCOUNTS 
OF  THE  GREAT  WORKS  OF  ART  WHICH  ADORNED  THE  CITY  OF  PERICLES.  TO 
THE  INFLUENCE  OF  THESE  VISITS  MAY  BE  TRACED  THE  ADVENT  AMONG  THE 
ROMANS  AT  A  LATER  PERIOD  OF  THOSE  ATHENIAN  MASTERS  WHICH  GAVE 
CHARACTER  TO  THE  MOST  RENOWNED  ERA  OF  GREEK  CIVILIZATION,  AND 
WHOSE  WORKS  AND  TEACHINGS  LED  TO  A  REVOLUTION  IN  THE  ROMAN  ART 
OF  THAT  DAY,  CULMINATING  IN  A  BRIEF  PERIOD  IN  THE  STUDENTS  OF  ROME 
RIVALLING  THEIR  MASTERS  OF  GREECE. 

WHAT  A  GLORIOUS  OPPORTUNITY  IS  AFFORDED  OUR  OWN  PEOPLE  TO 
REPRODUCE  UPON  THIS  CONTINENT  A  HISTORICAL  PAR.\LLEL. 

THE  WEALTHY  CITIZEN  OF  NEW  YORK  IN  THE  NINETEENTH  CENTURY 
WENT  TO  GREECE,  ROME,  VENICE  AND  PARIS.    WH.\T  DID  HE  BRING  BACK? 


NEW  YORK 

M  DCCC  LXXX  VI 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2013 


http://archive.org/details/horrorsinarchiteOOhawk 


Architectural  Hof^f^o^^s 


He  proneness  of  New  Yorkers  when  traveling  abroad  to  indulge 


1  in  somewhat  exaggerated  descriptions  of  their  metropolis  is 
proverbial.  In  London,  Paris,  Rome,  Nice,  and  other  resorts  in 
Europe,  an  attentive  listener  may  often  hear  our  prosperous  and 
self-satisfied  men  of  business  tell  wondering  Englishmen,  French- 
men and  others,  that  New  York  is  the  finest  city  in  the  world,  and 
that  Americans  generally,  and  New  Yorkers  in  particular,  are  the 
most  intelligent,  cultured,  luxurious  and  progressive  people  on  the 
face  of  the  earth.  Some  go  so  far  as  to  intimate  that  there  is  very 
little  worth  seeing  or  possessing  outside  the  boundaries  of  their 
favored  Manhattan  Isle.  Possibly  a  few  may  admit  that  Paris  is 
all  very  well,  but,"  they  are  careful  to  add,  ^'  wait  until  you  see 
New  York." 

When  we  characterize  a  city  as  fine  or  beautiful,  we  must  take 
into  consideration  all  of  its  leading  and  general  features,  such  as 
streets,  parks,  docks,  public  and  private  buildings,  museums,  picture 
galleries  and  out-door  statuary.  All  of  these,  artistically  conceived, 
executed  and  harmoniously  combined,  go  very  far  toward  making 
a  beautiful  city.  Geographical  boundaries  or  a  large  population  do 
not  always  constitute  a  fine  city.    But  in  an  American  sense  they 


-4 


1 


usually  do.  And  with  most  Americans  all  that  is  beautiful  in  art 
and  architecture  fade  before  the  utilitarian  triumphs  of  trade  and 
the  all-absorbing  mania  for  moneymaking. 

New  York  is,  and  probably  will  be  for  a  century  to  come, 
supremely  crude  and  ostentatious  in  its  art  adornments  and  archi- 
tecture, thanks  to  the  commercial  instincts  of  its  trading  popula- 
tion. Its  architecture,  which  ought  to  be  its  best  and  grandest 
feature,  is  simply  barbarous.  Hardly  a  dozen  buildings  in  the  whole 
city  are  free  from  the  defects  and  deformities  born  of  that  most 
predominant  of  American  peculiarities — the  instinct  of  procuring 
as  much  as  possible  of  loud  and  vulgar  show  for  the  money 
expended.  It  is  this  instinct  of  the  trader  that  has  introduced  the 
hideous  iron  fronts  into  his  house  of  business,  which  architecturally 
disfigure  many  of  our  most  prominent  thoroughfares.  It  follows 
him  in  the  erection  of  his  home  ;  transforms  wood  into  the  sem- 
blance of  stone  and  paints  a  lie  upon  his  sanded  wood  and  zinc 
cornice.  This  instinct  is  the  parent  of  nearly  all  of  our  violations 
of  the  rules  of  good  art.  There  is  scarcely  an  existing  offence 
against  good  taste  in  architecture  in  this  city  which  cannot  be  traced 
to  this  source.  Show  the  average  business  man  of  New  York  how 
he  can  save,  in  the  erection  of  his  home  or  his  warehouse,  a  few 
hundred  dollars  and  he  will  not  hesitate  to  disfigure  his  own  building 
and  destroy  the  harmony  of  a  whole  block.  If  New  York  had  had 
no  good  examples  to  follow,  these  crudities  and  horrors  would  still 
reflect  upon  the  native  taste  and  inventive  faculties  of  our  country- 
men. 

Let  us  glance  for  a  moment  at  some  of  the  principal  cities  of 
Europe  to  see  if  we  cannot  establish  some  sort  of  a  standard  in  fine 
and  beautiful  cities.  London  may  be  truthfully  regarded  as  a  great 
and  fine  city.  It  is  well  and  honestly  governed ;  its  streets  are  well 
paved ;  it  abounds  in  fine  parks;  its  sanitary  condition  is  excellent ; 
it  has  many  public  and  private  buildings  rich  in  architectural 
adornments,  ancf  its  statues  and  art  monuments  generally  are 
worthy  of  respectful  consideration.  While  Paris  is  as  beautiful  and 
fanciful  as  a  dream,  London  is  a  staid  and  solid  reality. 


3 


Paris  is  not  only  a  great  city,  but  it  is  at  first  sight  bewilderingly 
beautiful.  No  part  of  our  earth  is  more  adorned.  It  may  be 
denominated  the  fairest  jewel  among  the  cities  of  the  world,  and  in 
the  number  and  beauty  of  its  public  buildings  and  monuments  it  is 
without  a  rival.  The  view  that  fascinates  the  eye  in  every  direction 
from  the  Place  de  la  Concorde  is  matchless  among  the  works  of 
man.  This  spectacle  in  itself  would  amply  recompense  one  for  the 
discomforts  of  an  ocean  voyage.  Good  taste  and  art  culture 
are  everywhere  manifested,  and  a  happy  combination  of  the 
useful  and  beautiful  pervades  the  whole.  Several  of  the  later 
examples  of  Parisian  architecture  are  splendid  illustrations  of  artistic 
instinct  and  study,  and  are  conclusive  proofs  of  the  refinement  of 
French  taste.  Where  can  a  nobler  or  more  stately  group  of  build- 
ings be  found  than  that  which  includes  the  Louvre,  Pavilion  de 
Flore,  and  many  of  the  public  offices?  Where  can  a  grander  or 
more  artistic  monument  be  found  than  the  Arc  de  Triomphe  ?  at 
once  a  triumph  of  symmetry  and  sculptural  adornment  and  the 
epitome  of  all  that  is  heroic  in  the  history  of  France ;  a  work 
worthy  of  the  mind  that  conceived  it,  and  of  the  reverent  regard  of 
a  great  nation !  The  existence  of  one  such  monument  ought  to  be 
satisfactory  evidence  of  the  art  culture  of  the  nation  which  produced 
it.  What  other  city  has  such  a  temple  dedicated  to  the  lyric 
drama?  It  is  without  doubt  the  most  original,  complete  and  charm- 
ing architectural  production  of  later  times.  The  best  principles  of 
ancient  and  modern  art  would  seem  to  have  been  exhausted  in  its 
outline  and  detail.  The  auditorium  is  indeed  disappointing.  The 
setting  is  worthy  of  a  better  jewel.  While  admiring  its  noble  out- 
lines and  artistic  adornments,  we  may  be  forgiven  by  critics  if  we 
forget  some  faults  of  interior  construction.  St.  Peter's,  at  Rome, 
strikes  the  beholder  with  astonishment  upon  first  sight,  but  seems 
to  decrease  in  size  upon  nearer  approach  ;  while  the  Opera  House, 
at  Paris,  unfolds  new  beauties  at  every  step  of  approach,  without 
losing  in  magnitude.  It  is  a  feast  of  which  the  eye  never  wearies 
and  is  emphatically  one  of  those  views  to  which  distance  does  not 
lend  enchantment.    The  Hotel  des  Invalides,  the  Palais  du  Corps 


4 


Legislatif,  the  Pantheon,  the  Madeleine,  Trocadero,  and  many 
other  buildings  are  fine  examples  of  the  noble  and  the  refined  in 
art. 

Berlin  and  Vienna  are  also  beautiful  cities.  Though  not  to  be 
compared  with  Paris,  they  are  much  finer  in  their  general  features 
than  any  American  city.  They  contain  many  public  and  private 
buildings  which  bear  evidence  of  the  good  taste  and  culture  of 
their  citizens,  and  are  very  attractive  to  strangers.  The  Ring 
strasse  of  the  latter  contains  several  as  fine  edifices  as  are  to  be 
found  in  any  city  of  the  world. 

In  comparison  what  are  the  attractions  of  New  York  ?  An  in- 
telligent stranger  possessed  of  a  reasonable  amount  of  art  culture, 
landing  at  the  Battery  from  a  foreign  country,  would  shudder  to 
behold  that  wonderful  creation  of  New  York's  inventive  genius  and 
benevolence  known  as  the  elevated  railroad  structure. 

The  next  object  to  attract  his  attention  would  be  that  pandora 
box  of  electricity  born  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  monopoly. 
This  would  be  his  first  introduction  to  an  ultra  example  of  the  new 
order  of  American  architecture.  Beholding  its  superabudance  of  un- 
meaning, unsightly,  unnecessary  and  inartistic  iron  ornamentation 
and  its  apparent  top-heaviness,  the  instinct  of  self-preservation 
would  hasten  his  footsteps  to  the  opposite  side  of  the  street.  From 
the  fifth  story  upward  this  structure  presents  a  most  remarkable 
illustration  of  the  new  order,  which  might  be  appropriately  des- 
ignated the  Hotch  Potch,  in  contradistinction  to  the  composite. 

The  next  architectural  curiosity  to  claim  his  attention  would  be 
the  new  Post  Office  building,  with  its  multiform  and  multitudinous 
roofs,  and  its  banded  sections  of  ugly,  useless  columns,  which  Henry 
Ward  Beecher  remarked  looked  as  though  they  were  troubled 
with  a  continuous  attack  of  influenza." 

Following  along  the  natural  course  he  would  next  encounter  that 
barbaric  pile  erected  to  commemorate  the  founding  of  the  New 
York  Tribune  by  Horace  Greeley  in  1841,  a  malignant  and  gro- 
tesque caricature  of  several  of  the  better  features  of  the  Palazzo 


5 


Vecchia  at  Florence,  and  another  startling  example  of  the  new 
American  order. 

The  new  Court  House  would  next  confront  him ;  he  would 
wonder  from  what  book  of  drawings  its  parts  were  stolen,  and  mar- 
vel at  the  ingenuity  of  the  builder  that  jumbled  them  together  in 
such  a  hideous  whole. 

Continuing  up  Broadway — the  finest  street  in  the  world  " — 
he  would  have  abundant  opportunity  for  observing  the  endless  va- 
riety of  our  commercial  structures.  While  he  would  lament  over 
the  existence  of  the  many  Cheap-John  iron  fronts,  he  would  doubt- 
less rejoice  that  a  profusion  of  paint  partly  conceals  them,  and  he 
would  thank  the  painter  for  covering  the  work  of  the  puddler. 

After  being  dazed  with  an  altogether  unique  display  of  acres  of 
sign-boards  of  every  conceivable  form,  color  and  finish  (most  of 
which  would  disgrace  the  shop  of  a  quack  doctor  or  a  chiropodist), 
and  after  picking  his  way  through  a  forest  of  picturesque  and  inter- 
esting telegraph  poles  over  the  worst  pavement  in  the  world,  he 
would  reach  Fifth  Avenue — another  member  of  that  numerous 
American  family  of  "  the  finest  in  the  world."  Of  course  he  would 
pause  on  his  way  to  contemplate  that  singular  pile  of  vermi- 
culated  and  otherwise  ornamented  marble,  cast  iron  and  glass, 
erected  to  perpetuate  the  memory  of  a  great  success  in  dry  goods. 

A  few  blocks  more  and  he  will  reach  a  new  club  house.  This  is  the 
latest,  as  well  as  the  most  nerve-exciting  achievement  in  the  way  of 
metropolitan  house-building.  Its  existence  is  a  blessing,  and  its 
destruction  would  be  a  calamity  to  the  architects  of  New  York.  It 
has  been  asserted  that  of  the  numerous  plans  submitted  by  city 
architects  to  the  club  authorities,  none  were  found  sufficiently  mere- 
tricious or  outr^  to  meet  their  approval,  and  a  neighboring  city  at 
great  expense"  furnished  the  brain  that  conceived  this  pre- 
tentious monstrosity.  This  is,  beyond  all  question,  the  most  ex- 
treme illustration  of  the  new  order.  There  is  no  line,  angle,  or 
curve  known  to  geometry  that  cannot  be  found  jumbled  together 
without  aim  or  object  in  many  parts  of  the  exterior  of  this 
building.    Its  success  in  the  way  of  out-of-place,  clumsy,  un- 


6 


couth  and  queer  projections,  great  columns  supporting  nothing  and 
unsightly  forms  which  mean  nothing,  and  a  general  want  of  har- 
mony and  intelligent  design  is,  in  itself,  a  remarkable  triumph  of 
architectural  ingenuity.  A  writer  who  has  evidently  gained  the 
upper  sunflower  level  in  the  realm  of  aesthetic  literature  says : 
This  building  is  the  opposite  of  repose,  and  has  the  merit  of  its 
defects."  This  very  intelligible  and  lucid  description  clearly  and 
satisfactorily  defines  the  subject.  There  is,  however,  one  objection 
to  this  building  which  outweighs  all  of  those  relating  to  violations 
of  art  and  good  taste ;  it  is  the  absence  from  it  of  that  home 
air  which  is  essential  in  such  a  structure.  The  average  club  man 
considers  his  club  a  part  of  his  domicile,  consequently  in  all  of  its 
prominent  features  it  should  suggest  as  much  as  possible  of  home. 
And  if  it  fails  to  accomplish  this  result,  it  falls  far  short  of  what  it 
ought  to  be.  It  follows,  therefore,  that  the  exterior  and  interior 
should  be  homelike  and  quiet.  In  this  instance  there  is  not  the 
slightest  exterior  indication  of  interior  use.  It  might  as  well  have 
been  built  for  a  court  house  or  a  produce  exchange.  The  whole  is 
simply  an  incongruous,  inharmonius,  ostentatious  pile  thrown  to- 
gether without  any  design  predicated  upon  appreciative  professional 
intelligence. 

If  our  stranger  were  to  continue  his  walk  northward,  we  might 
next  find  him  looking  at  the  Metropolitan  Museum  of  Art,  that 
cross  between  a  cotton  press  and  a  pork-packing  establishment, 
with  an  interior  of  a  railway  station.  Here  he  would  pause,  wonder 
and  reflect,  and  would  naturally  suggest,  since  this  building  was 
erected  to  contain  works  of  art,  that  it  ought  to  present  an  artistic 
appearance  to  the  beholder.  If  questioned  on  this  point,  the  self- 
satisfied  citizen  would  probably  answer,  "  that  Americans  were  a 
practical  sort  of  people,  who  neither  want  nor  care  for  hifalutin  art 
flummery."  In  this  temple  dedicated  to  art  our  stranger  would 
look  in  vain  for  any  external  forms  of  beauty  or  ornamentation  in- 
dicative of  its  character  or  purposes,  and  he  would  involuntarily 
exclaim,  "  if  this  building  is  an  example  of  American  sense  of 
propriety,  the  art  culture  of  this  people  must  indeed  be  crude." 


7 


The  Natural  Science  Depository  west  of  the  park,  in  its  near 
resemblance  to  a  reasonably  fair  specimen  of  a  Manchester  cotton 
factory,  would  again  suggest  to  the  mind  of  our  stranger  the  practi- 
cal character  of  our  people,  and  he  could  easily  imagine  that  an 
academy  had  set  up  business  in  a  second-hand  manufactory. 

Standing  out  as  a  bright  oasis  in  this  dreary  desert  of  the  incon- 
gruous and  commonplace  is  the  Lenox  Library,  which  is  one  of  the 
two  or  three  public  buildings  in  the  city  of  New  York  which  does 
not  offend  good  taste.  It  is  solid,  plain,  appropriate,  and  is  not 
overburdened  with  inartistic,  tawdry  ornamentation.  The  natural 
good  sense  and  ripe  culture  of  its  generous  founder  is  evidenced  in 
its  construction,  and  it  is  a  monument  worthy  to  perpetuate  the 
memory  of  a  noble  and  intelligent  citizen.  The  ob9ervations  made 
during  this  walk  would  lead  the  astonished  stranger  to  the  adoption 
of  two  conclusions  : 

Firsts — That  he  had  landed  upon  the  shores  of  a  country  inhab- 
ited by  half-civilized  barbarians,  many  of  whom  had  apparently 
been  caught  out  in  an  indefinite  number  of  showers  of  greenbacks 
with  their  aprons  spread  in  front  of  them. 

Second, — That  the  world's  best  efforts  of  art  and  architecture 
were  unknown  to  this  people. 

Of  the  New  York  stores,"  shops,  warehouses  and  dwellings 
nothing  better  can  be  said  than  of  its  public  edifices.  As  a  rule, 
the  fronts  are  overloaded  with  useless,  rude,  inartistic  and  unmeaning 
projections  for  which  there  is  no  appropriate  space  or  place,  and  the 
whole  crowned  by  an  ostentatious  and  often  fantastic  cornice  of 
wood  or  zinc,  painted  and  sanded  to  imitate  the  stone-work,  usually 
out  of  proportion  with  the  structure  it  is  intended  to  ornament.  Of 
course  there  are  exceptions  to  this  commonplace  rule ;  they  are, 
however,  so  insignificant  in  numbers  that  they  do  but  little  toward 
elevating  the  general  character  of  our  city  architecture. 

It  is  possible  that  many  of  these  architectural  deformities  may 
be  attributed  to  characteristic  vanity  and  conceit.  Instead  of  prof- 
iting by  what  has  been  done  in  the  past,  our  architects  and  men  of 
wealth  have  started  out  upon  new  paths  of  their  own.   Of  course  it 


8 


goes  without  saying  that  their  achievements  are  designed  to  surpass 
anything  heretofore  attempted  in  architecture. 

A  resident  of  New  York,  of  supposed  culture  and  of  the  highest 
social  position  (he  has  the  reputation  of  being  worth  several  mil- 
lions), who  has  several  times  traveled  over  the  greater  part  of 
Europe,  has  said  that  he  considered  the  buildings  above  referred  to 
as  fine  as  anything  he  had  ever  seen  abroad.  If  American  educa- 
tion and  foreign  travel  lead  to  such  results,  we  surely  have  urgent 
need  to  reform  our  methods  of  education,  and  that  we  should 
promptly  erect  a  Chinese  wall  high  enough  to  insure  the  keeping 
of  our  peculiar  intelligence  to  ourselves. 


QUR  gRONZE  PJORRORS 


WHen  the  writer  undertook  con  amore  to  write  a  few  pages  of 
what  he  considered  to  be  well-merited  criticism  on  some 
American  peculiarities  made  painfully  conspicuous  in  the  out-door 
statuary  of  New  York,  it  was  not  his  intention  to  invade  the  realm 
of  architecture,  or  to  speak  of  general  city  features.  His  real 
objectives  were  the  examples  of  so-called  statuesque  art  which 
infest  the  public  places  of  the  metropolis,  and  which  he  has  grouped 
under  the  head  of    Our  Bronze  Horrors." 

Within  the  boundaries  of  New  York  City  there  are  now  exposed 
to  public  view  and  intended  to  be  commemorative  and  ornamental 
the  following  alleged  works  of  art,  viz.: 

I.  Statue  of  Franklin,  Printing  House  Square. 


2.  * 

'             "        Staats  Zeitung  Building. 

3.  ' 

'       Guttenberg,       "  " 

4. 

Washington,  Treasury  Building,  Wall  street. 

5. 

"          (equestrian),  Union  Square. 

6. 

"         (copy  Houdon),  Riverside  Park. 

7. 

Lafayette,  Union  Square. 

8. 

Lincoln, 

9- 

Seward,  Madison  Square. 

10. 

Farragut, 

II. 

Shakespeare,  Central  Park. 

12. 

Bums, 

13- 

Scott, 

14. 

Halleck, 

15. 

Morse,  " 

16. 

Webster,  " 

17. 

Hamilton,  " 

18. 

Seventh  Regiment,  " 

lO 


19.  Statue  of  Commerce,  Central  Park. 

20.  "  Indian  Hunter,  " 

21.  "  The  Pilgrim, 

22.  "  Falconer,  " 

23.  "  Bolivar  (equestrian),  Central  Park. 

24.  "  William  E.  Dodge,  Broadway  and  Sixth  avenue. 

25.  Bust  of  Humboldt,  Central  Park. 

26.  "  Moore, 

27.  "  Mazzini,  " 

28.  "  Schiller, 

29.  "  Beethoven, 

30.  Groups  of  Eagles  and  Lambs,  Central  Park. 

31.  "  Lioness  Feeding  her  Young,  Central  Park. 

32.  "  The  large  Vanderbilt  Bronze  in  relief,  Hudson  street. 

33.  "  Charity,  Equitable  Life  Insurance  Building,  Broadw^ay. 

Of  these,  two  or  three  are  good,  the  others  either  commonpbce 
or  indifferent  or  exceedingly  faulty.  Prominent  among  the 
latter  class  is  the  one  intended  to  represent  our  late  President 
Lincoln,  in  Union  Square.  It  would  seem  incredible  that  the  hand 
that  modeled  the  equestrian  statue  of  Washington  erected  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  Square  was  the  same  that  fashioned  this 
uncouth  caricature  of  our  beloved  Lincoln.  The  statue  of  Wash- 
ington is  most  creditable,  and,  if  not  a  great  work  of  art,  is,  on  the 
other  hand,  neither  commonplace  or  offensive.  The  other  is  inart- 
istic in  design  and  defective  in  general  treatment.  The  face  is  some- 
thing of  a  likeness,  and  is  the  best  part  of  a  statue  in  no  respect  credit- 
able to  art.  The  general  outline  of  the  figure  is  awkward,  unnatural, 
angular  and  stiff,  while  the  little  details  of  modeling  and  manipulation 
are  worthy  of  a  maker  of  figureheads  for  canal  boats,  and  Comanche 
warriors  for  the  fronts  of  snuff  shops.  President  Lincoln  was  not 
an  Apollo  Belvidere  in  form,  nor  Byronic  in  his  style  of  beauty,  but 
he  possessed  that  which  was  better  than  either,  a  most  interesting 
and  sympathetic  face.  No  one  ever  saw  him  while  he  was  Presi- 
dent without  being  impressed  with  his  unaffected  simplicity  of 
character  and  great  kindness  of  heart.  His  natural  expression  was 
of  extreme  kindliness  always  tinged  with  sadness.  This  statue 
expresses  none  of  these  characteristics,  which  have  contributed  so 


]  I 

much  toward  the  making  of  his  fame — which  is  the  revered  common 
property  of  every  loyal  household.  If,  as  a  work  of  art,  it  could  be 
pronounced  good,  even  then  it  would  be  a  failure,  as  it  does  not  in 
any  single  essential  particular  represent  the  man.  Worse  than 
the  statue,  if  possible ;  more  deplorable  in  design,  is  that  inde- 
scribable affair  around  the  base  of  its  pedestal,  popularly  de- 
nominated the  ''What  Is  It?" 

There  can  be  no  possible  excuse  for  surrounding  the  base  of  the 
statue  with  the  hideous  circle  of  meaningless  masonry  bearing  the 
inscription.  The  appropriate  place  for  an  inscription  is  upon  the 
sides  of  a  pedestal,  and  not  upon  a  section  of  a  stone  wall  around 
its  base.  This  effort  of  genius  must  have  emanated  from  the  art 
department  of  the  Park  Commission.  Only  a  choice  lot  of  politi- 
cally-appointed commissioners  could  have  achieved  such  a  result. 

As  we  approach  this  statue  from  the  front  we  see  only  the 
words  ''with  malice,"  which  would  naturally  indicate  to  a  stranger 
that  malice  was  the  prominent  trait  in  Mr.  Lincoln's  character. 
The  want  of  knowledge  which  was  the  cause  of  this  violation  of 
propriety  is  wholly  unpardonable. 

The  bronze  affair  in  Madison  Square  intended  to  perpetuate 
the  memory  of  Mr.  Seward  is  the  production  of  an  exceedingly 
energetic  and  pushing  man  of  business.  If  he  had  taken  to  Wall 
street,  stocks,  railroads  or  patent  medicines,  instead  of  clay,  marble 
and  bronze,  he  would  have  achieved  enduring  fame,  and  the  world 
would  have  recorded  another  "  Wall  Street  Magnate,"  "  Railroad 
King  "  or  "  Merchant  Prince."  An  individual  of  an  inquiring  turn 
of  mind  would  naturally  ask.  How  is  it  that  a  person  who  has  manu- 
factured so  many  statues,  groups  and  heroic  monuments  should 
have  made  them  all  so  far  beneath  critical  contempt  ?  This  supposed 
sculptor  has  succeeded  in  planting  his  grotesque  effigies  in  many 
places  upon  the  face  of  this  fair  continent,  and  in  vain  we  search 
among  them  all  for  an  example  which  could  stand  the  test  of  intel- 
ligent criticism.  In  the  soldiers'  plot  in  the  cemetery  at  Cincinnati 
there  is  a  statue,  by  this  manufacturer,  of  a  soldier,  which  might 
appropriately  be  called  the  P'lying  Dutchman,  and  at  Providence, 


12 


R.  I.,  there  is  a  monument,  also  by  him,  with  five  figures,  erected  to 
perpetuate  the  fame  of  Rhode  Island's  sons  killed  in  battle,  and  the 
workmanship  is  worthy  of  his  business  qualifications  and  of  the 
inspection  of  those  who  are  curious  in  the  matter  of  heroic  monu- 
ments. The  citizens  of  Providence  may  congratulate  themselves 
on  possessing  an  entirely  unique  production  of  the  ultra-American 
type. 

While  contemplating  this  statue  of  Seward  we  see  only  the 
workshop  of  the  founder.  One  could  never  realize  that  the  model 
from  which  it  was  cast  had  ever  known  the  cunning  hand  of  a 
sculptor.  It  is  as  commonplace  as  possible,  and  the  design  might 
have  been  taken  from  a  State  bank-note  of  twenty-five  years  ago. 
There  is  not  the  slightest  evidence  of  its  having  been  modeled  from 
a  human  form.  Poor  Seward,  saved  from  the  dagger  of  the  assas- 
sin, little  dreamed  of  the  fate  his  deluded  but  well-meaning  friends 
had  in  store  for  him.  Alas !  something  worse  than  death,  which  is 
only  momentary.  Bronze  will  endure  the  ravages  of  time  and  the 
elements  for  centuries. 

Professor  Morse  was  an  artist  before  he  became  an  inventor. 
His  portraits  are  regarded  as  meritorious  works  of  art  and  interest- 
ing as  counterfeit  presentments  of  his  sitters.  Decent  respect  for 
his  memory  as  an  artist  ought  to  have  insured  better  treatment  at 
the  hands  of  his  friends.  If  necessary  to  perpetuate  him  in  bronze, 
the  task  ought  to  have  been  accomplished  with  some  degree  of 
artistic  skill.  This  statue  which  his  friends  have  purchased  is  a 
worthy  member  of  the  Lincoln-Seward  family.  It  cannot  be  very 
much  worse  than  either,  and  certainly  is  not  much  better.  The 
sculptor  who  exercised  his  invention  upon  this  production  was  evi- 
dently aware  of  his  incapacity,  and  did  not  attempt  anything  in  the 
way  of  fantastic  position,  elaborate  modeling  or  delicate  detail.  Ht^ 
was  undoubtedly  wise  in  contenting  himself  with  erecting  upon  a 
pedestal  a  vertical  column  of  bronze  metal,  void  of  form  or  expres- 
sion. The  one  thing  satisfactory  about  the  affair  is  this :  the  park 
authorities  have  been  considerate  in  placing  it  away  from  either  of 
the  principal  thoroughfares. 


13 


One  of  our  two  most  extraordinary  productions  is  that  com- 
posite casting  erected  to  perpetuate  the  memory  of  the  author 
of  *^  Marco  Bozzaris."  Until  the  Scotch  statue  of  Burns  was 
erected,  this  stood  alone  in  the  might  of  its  hideousness.  It  is  not' 
possible  that  there  can  be  anything  like  it  above,  upon  or  under  the 
earth.  And  it  is  quite  impossible  for  a  person  of  fair  understanding 
to  conjecture  the  why  and  wherefore  of  its  discouraging  existence. 
Were  the  friends  of  the  dead  poet  blind,  or  were  they  only  intent 
upon  carrying  out  the  commercial  idea  of  getting  the  most  for  their 
money?  If  the  intent  of  the  manufacturer  was  to  represent  a  real 
human  figure,  why  did  he  furnish  the  promoters  of  the  statue 
scheme  with  a  lay  figure  in  bronze,  and  a  very  grotesque  one  at 
that  ?  And  wherefore  did  he  appropriate,  elaborate,  and  magnify 
the  chair  of  the  inventor  of  the  Seward?  It  was  also  unkind  to  steal 
the  legs  of  Seward  and  give  them  to  Halleck.  This  figgur " 
maker  has  been  too  generous.  A  single  city  ought  not  to  possess 
more  than  one  such  chair.  These  elaborate  examples  of  the  foun- 
drymen's  art  ought  to  be  equitably  distributed.  Every  city  of 
over  five  hundred  thousand  inhabitants  should  possess  one  such 
bronze  chair  and  its  accompanying  emblems  for  the  purpose  of 
warning  stone  cutters,  iron  moulders,  and  confectionery  modelers 
what  to  avoid.  This  casting  is  worse  than  the  puzzle  of  fifteen. 
The  more  it  is  studied  the  less  there  is  known  about  it.  It  is  quite 
impossible  to  arrive  at  any  sort  of  a  satisfactory  conclusion  as  to 
what  it  is  about.  It  is  doubtful  if  any  person,  however  skilled  or 
learned  in  statuary,  could  decide  if  the  maker  intended  it  for  a  me- 
morial of  a  man  or  an  advertisement  of  the  latest  thing  in  the  way 
of  a  cast-iron  architectural  chair,  invented  by  some  enterprising  fur- 
niture dealer.  Could  the  writer  of  the  Stones  of  Venice  decide  as 
to  whether  the  statue  was  made  for  the  chair  or  the  chair  for  the 
statue?  A  satisfactory  solution  of  this  interesting  problem  must 
be  left  to  some  future  disciple  of  high  art.  The  presence  of  a  part 
of  a  regalia  in  the  form  of  a  collar  in  use  for  cart  horses  forces 
another  puzzling  suggestion  upon  the  mind  of  the  beholder.  Seem- 
ingly there  can  be  but  one  explanation  of  the  presence  of  this  em- 


14 


l)lem.  The  poet  must  have  belonged  to  the  Hibernians  or  the 
Friendly  Sons  of  St.  Patrick,  and.  when  he  posed  for  this  ''figgur"' 
had  just  come  in  from  a  parade  in  honor  of  Ireland's  Patron  Saint. 
•This  conclusion,  if  not  correct,  is  somewhat  satisfactory,  since  it 
accounts  for  the  presence  of  one  part  of  the  casting.  There  are 
also  other  evidences  which  bear  out  this  conclusion.  The  poet  has 
thrown  his  blanket  (no  doubt  green)  upon  one  corner  of  his  chair, 
and  hung  his  wreath  of  laurel  or  shamrock  upon  the  other.  It  ib 
a  well-established  historical  fact  that  the  seventeenth  of  March  can- 
not be  relied  upon,  so  far  as  wet  and  wind  are  concerned  ;  hence  the 
presence  of  a  back  cover,  and  the  wreath  for  the  protection  of  the 
head.  The  beholder  of  this  work  will  also  perceive  that  the  poet 
has  provided  himself  with  note-book  and  pencil.  In  all  well-regu- 
lated attempts  at  sculpture  and  portrait  painting  these  symbols  are 
used  to  denote  literary  propensities.  The  average  reporter  of  one 
of  ''The  great  Metropolitan  Dailies  "  is  supposed  to  have  number- 
less pockets  filled  with  these  useful  commodities.  In  the  days  of 
the  poet  in  question,  that  useful  being,  the  omnipresent,  unflagging, 
indefatigable,  and  never-ending  individual  known  as  the  reporter 
did  not  flourish  as  now,  and  great  literary  lights  were  not  above 
v>-riting  an  account  of  an  important  event  for  a  newspaper.  Now, 
query:  Was  not  this  poet  at  the  time  he  was  set  up  in  clay  engaged 
in  writing  a  spirited  report  of  the  "  Patrick's  Day  Procession  ?"  It 
is  impossible  to  think  or  write  seriously  of  this  singular  caricature, 
and  the  reasons  for  its  existence  must  ever  remain  a  mystery.  How 
a  set  of  men  could  have  been  brought  together,  professing  to  have 
been  friends  and  admirers  of  a  notable  poet,  and  could  have  ac- 
cepted a  model  for  such  an  affair  as  this  is  a  wonder ;  and  after  its 
-completion  in  bronze  it  is  incomprehensible  that  a  Park  Commis- 
sion could  be  found  possessing  the  requisite  want  of  culture  and 
sufficiency  of  bad  taste  to  accept  it  for  the  city  and  permit  its 
erection. 

Several  inconsiderate  countrymen  of  the  immortal  Robert  Burns, 
residing  in  the  city  of  New  York,  are  far  in  advance  of  the  friends 
of  Halleck.    They  have  presented,  and  the  Park  Commissioners 


15 


have  accepted,  a  very  extraordinary  bronze  casting  which  is  worse 
than  the  Halleck,  and  which  it  is  alleged  represents  the  physical 
form  of  one  of  the  world's  most  loved  and  charming  poets.  But 
they  had  to  go  outside  the  borders  of  American  territory  in 
order  to  achieve  complete  success  in  this  unparalleled  undertaking. 
No  American  citizen,  native  or  naturalized,  could  be  found  so 
entirely  lost  to  all  sense  of  present  shame  or  hope  of  future  salva- 
tion as  to  permit  of  his  designing  or  constructing  a  thing  so 
supremely  hideous. 

These  gentlemen  no  doubt  sent  out  specifications  and  blank 
contracts  to  all  the  foundrymen  and  stone  cutters  in  this  country 
with  requests  to  return  plans  in  illustration  of  specifications,  and 
at  the  same  time  to  furnish  bonds  for  the  faithful  performance 
of  contract.  When  all  the  bids  had  been  returned,  and  the 
bonds  examined  and  approved,  the  drawings  of  the  various  would- 
be  contractors  were  then,  no  doubt,  submitted  to  a  select  com- 
mittee appointed  for  their  especial  fitness  as  experts  in  statuary ; 
and  after  many  solemn  conferences  rejected,  for  the  reason  that 
none  of  them  were  sufficiently  grotesque  or  worse  than  the  Halleck. 
A  decision  was  then  made  to  cross  the  ocean  in  search  of  novelty, 
and  a  few  months  later  the  unfortunate  residents  of  New  York 
were  permitted  to  behold  the  result.    And  such  a  result ! ! ! 

What  brain  could  have  conceived,  and  what  hand  manipulated 
the  clay  which  brought  forth  this  monster  of  hideousness,  so 
devoid  of  the  form  of  man  and  of  intelligent  design?  This  fiendish 
worker  in  clay  has  fashioned  Burns  into  the  most  inconceivably  silly- 
looking,  expressionless,  booby-milksop-bumpkin  ever  cast  in  any 
mould.  The  intention  of  the  designer  of  this  statue  can  never 
be  even  conjectured.  No  pen  can  describe  it  ;  it  is  as  far  beyond 
description  as  it  is  out  of  the  reach  of  criticism.  It  must  be  seen 
to  be  appreciated. 

That  ponderous  mass  of  metal  intended^to  represent  Sir  Walter 
Scott  and  his  dog;  the  statue  in  stone  of  Alexander  Hamilton; 
and  that  pompous,  strutty  affair  erected  to  represent  Daniel 
Webster,  are  sufficiently  low  down  in  the  scale  of  art  to  be  let 


i6 

alone.  But  the  New  Yorker  of  a  hundred  years  hence  will  fe' 
thankful  that  they  are  not  so  hopelessly  bad  as  are  some  of  thei 
companions. 

There  is  another  colossal  and  startling  example  of  the  New 
York  art  idea,  which  the  curious  may  find  embedded  in  the 
upper  portion  of  a  wall  of  a  railway  freight  station  in  Hudson 
street.  The  reason  for  its  existence  and  art  status  may  be  ex- 
plained in  a  few  words  more  conspicuous  for  strength  than  elegance. 
It  is  a  tribute  which  questionably  acquired  wealth,  and  bad  taste 
have  paid  to  successful  and  unprecedented  trickery  and  avarice. 
The  addition  of  a  watering-pot  to  the  principal  figure  would  add  to 
the  harmony  and  significance  of  the  design. 

One  of  the  later  additions  to  our  bronze  family  is  a  statue 
to  commemorate  the  brave,  modest  and  loved  Farragut.  This 
work,  with  a  comical  side,  which  has  been  erected  to  perpetuate 
his  memory,  is  interesting  and  fairly  represents  the  man,  but  the 
pedestal,  which  is  presumably  an  example  of  the  very  highest  art 
of  the  Grosvenor  Gallery  School,  puzzles  all  beholders.  It  is 
doubtful  if  any  reasonable  expenditure  of  intellectual  force  could 
decipher  its  meaning.  To  the  writer  it  seems  an  affectation  which 
interprets  exactly  nothing. 

A  considerable  number  of  the  world's  would-be  upper  intellectuals 
are  said  to  be  engaged  in  a  search  after  the  beautiful,  the  true  and  the 
good.  Some  of  them,  if  accounts  are  to  be  credited,  have  discov- 
ered all  of  these  combined  in  a  teapot,  while  others  have  found  refuge 
from  the  chills  of  a  cold,  unfeeling  world  beneath  the  shadow  of  a 
sunflower.  It  is  also  asserted  that  many  of  these  worshippers,  after 
having  ascertained  where  true  happiness  is  to  be  found,  are  devoting 
themselves  to  the  attainment  of  the  upper  teapot  level.  At  least 
one  of  these  immortals,  we  fear,  has  strayed  from  his  loved  occupa- 
tion, and  the  result — an  aesthetic  pedestal. 

Among  the  later  additions  to  our  public  collection  can  be  found 
in  the  Central  Park  an  equestrian  statue  of  Simon  Bolivar,  one  of 
the  South  American  patriots,  a  present  from  his  countrymen  and  a 
replica  of  an  original  erected  somewhere  in  his  native  land. 


17 


We  ought  to  be  very  thankful  for  this  example  of  South  Amer- 
ican casting.  For  in  the  fact  of  its  existence  we  find  the  consoling 
proof — most  conclusive — that  there  is  another  people  in  the  world 
quite  as  devoid  of  art  knowledge  and  taste  as  ourselves. 

The  latest  addition  to  our  out-of-door  statuary  is  a  full-length 
bronze  figure  of  the  late  William  E.  Dodge,  by  Ward.  The  world 
is  no  doubt  puzzled  to  account  for  its  existence,  for  in  no  sense  was 
Mr.  Dodge  a  distinguished  citizen  of  the  United  States.  He  was 
an  exact  and  successful  churchman  of  the  strictly  orthodox  pattern, 
a  merchant  whose  career  had  its  cloudy  as  well  as  sunny  days,  but 
he  so  managed  that  the  (often  dense)  clouds  which  beset  him  had 
both  golden  and  silver  linings.  He  was  at  one  time  a  member  of 
Congress,  and  presumably  useful  in  that  capacity  and  sufficiently 
attentive  to  his  public  duties,  but  in  no  way  did  he  distinguish  him- 
self by  a  conspicuous  display  of  talent.  That  he  gave  liberally  of 
his  ample  means  is  undeniable,  and  for  this  liberality — so  unusual 
among  the  rich  men  of  New  York — he  deserves  great  credit.  But 
do  these  acts  of  giving,  which  render  him  exceptional  among 
his  class,  or  any  of  his  other  prominent  characteristics,  entitle 
him  to  a  statue  in  a  public  place  in  a  great  metropolis  ?  If  so,  why 
not  one  to  the  late  Oleander  Fatlean,  the  rich  pork-packer,  and  an- 
other to  Cannygrab  Doubletwist,  the  late  distinguished  dry  goods 
merchant?  and  the  claims  of  Aristides  Bullebare,  the  aristocratic 
stock  broker^  the  Adonis  of  the  Exchange  and  hero  of  one  winter's 
society  Germans,  ought  not  to  pass  unrecognized  ;  while  Magnus 
Fishplate,  the  "  Great  Stock-watering  Railroad  King,"  should  go 
down  to  posterity  as  the  central  figure  of  an  allegorical  historical 
group  of  overflowing  watering-pots.  The  Park  Commissioners 
would  gladly  consent,  and  the  respective  families  of  the  several  de- 
functs would  eagerly  defray  the  expense.  But,  seriously,  it  is  both  a 
mistake  and  misfortune  that  this  statue  should  have  been  permitted 
to  occupy  a  place  in  a  public  thoroughfare.  It  establishes  a  prece- 
dent which  is  likely  to  be  extensively  followed,  and  may  ultimately 
result  in  an  epidemic  of  bronze  and  stone  effigies  springing  up  in  our 
public  squares  commemorative  of  the  virtues  of  ''our  most  distin- 


i8 

guished  citizens  of  high  social  position."   And  following  the  nat. 
course  of  this  extraordinary  epidemic,  we  may  within  a  few  years  cc 
fidently  expect  to  see  statues  added  to  a  price-current  list  and  quote 
at  so  much  per  pound.    The  statue  may  even  follow  so  closely  oi 
the  heels  of  the  funeral  that  the  bereaved  widow  shall  dry  her  tears 
by  the  burning  rays  of  light  reflected  from  a  costly  counterfeit  pre- 
sentment in  bronze,  gotten  up  regardless  of  expense,  but  commer- 
cially a  bargain. 

In  1874,  the  then  members  of  the  Park  Commission,  no  doubt 
realizing  their  incapacity  to  deal  with  rapidly  accumulating  art 
questions  which  were  being  brought  before  them,  appointed  a 
special  committee,  consisting  of  the  President  of  the  Metropolitan 
Museum  of  Art,  the  President  of  the  National  Academy  of  Design 
and  the  President  of  the  College  of  Architects,  to  assist  in  solving 
these  art  problems.  Unless  the  writer  has  been  misinformed,  this 
committee  was  in  existence  when  the  application  was  made  to 
erect  the  Burns  statue  in  Central  Park,  and  the  question  of  artistic 
worth  was  probably  submitted  to  it  for  its  judgment ;  and  if  thii 
committee  decided  that  is  was  worthy  of  a  place  in  one  of  ou: 
parks,  of  what  value  is  the  opinion  of  such  experts  ?  Why  not 
dissolve  this  committee  and  appoint  another  composed  of  a  shoe- 
maker, a  tinker  and  a 'longshoreman  ?  If  the  Park  Commissioners 
and  the  manufacturers  of  statues  are  as  active  and  industrious  for 
the  next  quarter  of  a  century  as  they  have  been  in  the  past,  our 
parks  will  be  mistaken  for  burial  places  for  at  least  one  of  the  lost 
arts,  and  the  statues  erected  by  these  assassins  of  art  mistaken  for 
appropriate  mortuary  memorials.  There  is  seemingly  one  way  out 
of  this  unfortunate  business.  An  importation  of  Nihilists  accom- 
panied by  the  friendly  dynamite  might  effect  for  us  a  most  merciful 
deliverance  from  the  evil. 

One  of  New  York's  urgent  needs  is  an  intelligent  and  honest 
supervision  of  parks  and  public  places.  There  has  not  been  in 
existence  for  many  years  a  board  of  commissioners  capable  of 
caring  for  and  fostering  the  important  interests  which  they  are 
called  upon  to  direct  and  develop.    There  has  probably  never 


19 


been  more  than  half  a  dozen  persons  connected  with  the  official 
management  of  the  parks,  whose  taste  or  knowledge  of  art  matters 
were  of  the  slightest  value.  Commissioners  are  appointed  for  short 
periods  of  time,  and  are  usually  selected  with  special  reference  to 
their  capacity  for  corrupt  practices  in  the  interest  of  party  bosses, 
and  a  faithful  distribution  of  political  patronage.  It  is  a  matter  of 
the  greatest  moment  that  the  vicious  and  incompetent  henchmen 
of  these  political  bosses  shall  fill  the  department,  and  spend  their 
time  in  committing  offences  against  good  taste  and  depredations 
upon  the  city  treasury,  and  in  smashing  municipal  china  generally  ; 
\vhile  it  is  not  of  the  least  importance  that  the  public  service 
should  be  properly  administered.  The  results  of  this  political  man- 
agement are  the  ignoring  of  important  interests,  mismanagement, 
and  the  department  transferred  to  the  predominating  Irish  party 
machine,  which  misgoverns  all  and  absorbs  all.  The  successful 
man  of  business  empties  the  contents  of  his  pockets  into  the  coffers 
of  the  ruling  party,  and  bowing  to  the  yoke  which  political  rascals 
have  fashioned  for  him, 

Bears  his  burden  like  an  ass, 

And  bends  his  willing  back  for  more. 

The  writer  of  this  brochure  does  not  flatter  himself  that  what  he 
has  written  will  produce  any  impression  upon  those  who  form  com- 
mittees for  the  propagation  of  statues,  upon  Park  Commissioners,  or 
upon  any  other  person  or  persons  who  may  chance  to  direct  in  such 
matters.  In  the  future,  as  in  the  past,  no  individual  will  be  placed 
upon  a  statue  committee  who  has  either  art  knowledge  or  culture  ; 
but  great  care  will  be  taken  to  see  that  no  member  of  such  a  com- 
mittee will  make  its  social  standing  questionable  by  being  worth  less 
than  one  million  of  dollars  in  approved  securities. 

In  conclusion,  an  idea  or  two,  perhaps  egotistical,  must  be  set 
forth,  and  then  this  tirade  will  have  come  to  an  end.  The  writer 
believes  the  following  propositions  are  worthy  of  consideration  : 

(i.)  A  statue  or  group,  whether  representing  a  person,  persons, 
allegory,  or  mythology,  ought  beyond  all  question  to  be  a  self- 
evident,  easily  recognized  work  of  art.    This  is  a  first  and  indispen- 


20 


sable  requisite;  without  it  no  such  work  has  a  right  to  be  displayed 
in  a  public  place. 

(2.)  A  statue  or  group  ought  in  the  most  simple,  dignified  and 
natural  manner  to  represent  the  person,  persons,  object,  or  thing 
intended.  It  should  be  truthful,  and  follow  nature  as  closely  as 
possible. 

(3.)  The  object  of  works  of  art  displayed  in  public  places  is  at 
least  two-fold — artistic  and  commemorative.  As  a  work  of  art  it 
must  instruct  and  please  the  beholder,  and  should  commemorate 
only  those  whose  great  and  good  deeds  a  nation  ought  to  remem- 
ber. Certainly  the  career  of  a  private  citizen,  however  commend- 
able, presents  no  claim  to  public  recognition  in  the  form  of  a  statue 
erected  in  a  public  place. 

If  a  monument  or  statue  fail  in  any  of  these  essential  elements 
(and  there  are  few  of  them  in  this  city  that  do  not),  it  ought  not  to 
exist  except  as  private  property  and  on  private  grounds.  The 
saying  that  bad  art  is  better  than  none  is  a  grave  error.  Bad  art  viti- 
ates the  public  taste  and  lowers  the  standard  of  true  art.  And  those 
persons  who,  through  ignorance  or  to  indulge  a  vulgar  appetite  for 
notoriety,  aid  in  the  dissemination  of  spurious  and  inartistic  monu- 
ments deserve  the  reprobation  of  every  intelligent  citizen.  Statues 
are  not  necessities,  they  are  one  of  the  many  extraordinary  out- 
growths of  a  luxurious  civilization,  and  for  that  reason,  if  for  no 
other,  the  public  should  have  the  best  or  none.  Vale. 


